Two of the most popular data visualization tools, Tableau and Qlikview are easily the most widely used tools when it comes to interpreting complicated data sets. An outstanding combination of animated charts, graphic manipulation tools, BI capabilities for interactive analytics, text and interactive dashboard, both of them present extraordinary features, making them stand out of others. Tableau and Qlik have always grabbed a coveted spot at the Gartner’s Magic Quadrant. Let’s try to understand how these two tools are different from each other.

Before we begin, it is important to understand that these two are highly ranked tools by professionals and may have pros and cons depending on the kind of work that the user is looking for. For instance, Tableauis a good option if a user is looking for an easy, user friendly visualization format or a scalable software solution to be used within an organization. Whereas QlikView could be a good option in a large organization which may require multifaceted software to look into different departments.

QlikView:

This visualization tool brought to you by Qlik, is a simple and easy tool that lets the user put business in total control. It lets you consolidate, search, visualize and analyze all the data sources for fetching useful business insights. QlikView is an easy way to get answers to the most critical business questions in quick time.

One of the highest used tools, it also ranks high in terms of customer loyalty, performance, features and quality. It offers integrated BI platform along with highly insightful demos, training manuals and tutorials, helping the users to get easily acquainted with the tool in no time. It comes with several components such as QlikView SERVER (QVS), QlikView Publisher (QVP).

Cons

Its structure can be overwhelming with lots of tabs making it difficult to manage and understand the tool in first go.

It has some extra features that is not used to its full propensity.

It has a time-demanding setup unlike tableau

Tableau:

This quick to analyze and visualize tool, has been a market leader for quite a long time. The visualization capabilities of Tableau are quite diverse and highly insightful, giving it an edge over others. Features such as word clouds, bubble maps, tree maps enhance comprehension and gives various options to display information. The company states that more than 54,000 customer accounts have been getting rapid results with Tableau in the office and on-the-go. It has several components such as Gateway/load balancer, application server, repository, VISQL server, data engine, backgrounder, data server.

Pros

1.Deployment- It is easier to deploy as it requires more structured data.

2.Usability and functionality-

It does not require coding at all and the entire interface is based on drag and drop making the tool easy to use and may be effectively used by those with little technical expertise.

Its interface is simple, not filled with too many features at one page.

It comes with an ability to blend data sets and collaborate in real-time making it a highly desirable business intelligence technology.

8.Multi-dimensional mapping- Tableau is very efficient in creating multi-dimensional maps with the help of its in-built geo-coding feature. It is a lot easier to create geospatial dashboards with Tableau.

9.Security- Tableau exercise control over the access of information with the help of various security measures.

Cons

Though it can integrate with many data sources, the list is shorter than that of QlikView.

Srishti currently works as Associate Editor for Analytics India Magazine. When not covering the analytics news, editing and writing articles, she could be found reading or capturing thoughts into pictures.